The day they became a family
by gwendolineB
Summary: Request about Liz having a little sister who is a troublemaker. Please read and review! Rated T. I haven't written anything in a long time, so please be kind :)
1. Chapter 1

**I don't own The Blacklist and I don't make money with fanfiction.**

 **Dear readers, it's me again. After a long break I've decided to write again because I got a request for a story about Liz having a little sister. Tom is almost completely out of the picture. Please read and review**

These past few months had been difficult for Liz. She had received a letter from a girl named Bethany, who claimed to be her sister. She was nine years old, which was another reason for Liz to believe her mother was alive.

By now, she was actually sure of it. She hadn't told Red about Bethany for three months, but kept asking him about her own mother. Of course he noticed something was off, but he carefully avoided addressing any sensitive topics, since they needed to rebuild their trust. Two months ago, he had Tom killed by an associate of his who made it look like Tom died in a car crash with a drunk driver. Liz knew Red had something to do with it, and Red knew Liz knew.

Nevertheless, they hadn't talked about it much. The one thing Red couldn't understand about Liz was how easily she could forgive and forget. Now, a month later, their relationship was getting better and better, although he knew she was keeping a secret from him. He also was keeping secrets, probably worse secrets than hers, and Dembe was constantly telling him that she deserved the truth, but he couldn't bring himself to tell her about her mother Katerina. Liz knew her name, and she was almost certain she was still alive, but for a few weeks, Red had been feeling like she knew more than he had told her.

In her first letter to Liz, Bethany had told her why she believed Liz to be her sister. She had seen Liz and Reddington on tv during their time as fugitives, and one of her friends in the children's home she was living noticed that Bethany looked a lot like Liz, almost as if Bethany, or Beth, like everyone called her, was a nine years old version of this Elizabeth Keen everyone knew from tv. Since then, Beth had researched everything about Liz on the internet. "You wouldn't believe what I found out!" she wrote to Liz, who was terrified about the amount of newspaper articles, information and Wikipedia articles that were out there. Like many other people who followed her and Reddington's escape from the FBI, the Cabal and everyone else who wanted them dead or in prison, Beth was amazed by their 'Bonnie and Clyde' relationship. Liz even found out that there were some strange people who were writing something called 'fanfiction' about her and Red. Since she had heard about fanfiction before, she decided not to read it because she knew what kind of stories there were. She was curious about what people thought of their relationship, but she really didn't want to read any smutty stories.

Liz had been exchanging letters with Beth for three months now. Letters were kind of oldschool, but since Beth lived in a children's home in Seattle, she didn't have email. It was quite a crappy children's home, and Liz often thought about visiting Beth, but she wasn't sure if Red had people following her. She didn't want him to find out yet, she wanted to tell him about Beth in the right moment, so she gave a part of her salary to the children's home every month to help at least a little bit. She knew about Glen, Red's informant at the DMV, so she had paid him a visit after Beth's third letter to find out if they were actually related. Two months later Glen called her to his office. He was very friendly and helpful, and not at all like Red had described him.

xxxxx Present time:

Now, three months after Beth's first letter, one month after Liz found out the truth about her and countless nights of thinking about telling Red, she had made a decision.

xxxxx

The next day at the office, she was distracted, she couldn't think straight and people were constantly asking if she was alright. She wasn't an agent anymore but still had a desk in the office. Her job as a 'consultant' allowed her to stay there when she had to work on a case and, unlike Red, she appreciated having a safe job in the FBI. The office she had shared with Ressler was now occupied by him and Samar, which had to be hard for both of them, since they had spent a night together and Samar had told Ressler that he sucked in bed. Everyone had heard about this, and everyone acted like nobody knew anything.

Liz looked up from her desk when she smelled Red's expensive cologne. He walked in with his usual confidence and gave her the 'We need to talk, Elizabeth' look.

"What do you want, Red?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. All she could think was _he knows, he knows, he knows, oh my God, he knows._

"With me. Now."

Liz got up from her chair and followed him to another room, realizing that once again, all eyes were on the two of them. It was always like this. Whenever they went anywhere to have a private discussion, everyone stopped working to stare at them and gossip about what was going on behind the closed door. Red was well aware of the gossip in the office but didn't give a damn about what people thought. _A character trait that I have to learn_ Liz thought to herself. When they had closed the door, she found herself in a corner, standing uncomfortably close to Red. By the way he looked at her, she could tell he was suspecting something and was determined to find out the truth.

She had to tell him.

 **xxxxx**

 **To be continued, thanks for reading, please leave a review and tell me what you think!**


	2. Chapter 2

**I don't own The Blacklist and I don't make money with fanfiction.**

 **Sorry for the delay, here's chapter 2:**

 **xxxxx**

Previously: {…] By the way he looked at her, she could tell he was suspecting something, and was determined to find out the truth. She had to tell him.

xxxxx

"Listen, Red…um…"

"Oh, I'm listening, Lizzie. Now would be a good time to tell me what you've been hiding from me all those months."

Liz both hated and loved this arrogant tone of his, and he knew it. She looked aside, knowing that she couldn't tell him right now.

"I'll tell you later, ok? I don't wanna talk about this here. Just…come over tonight and we talk about it."

 _Have I invited him to my home? Oh my god…it has always been the other way round_. she thought.

He raised an eyebrow, saying nothing. After a long moment of uncomfortable silence, he finally answered.

"I'll bring dinner, see you at eight."

xxxxx Later that day:

Liz and Red were sitting at the kitchen table, eating the Chinese takeout he brought, while Liz was thinking of a way to avoid talking about the elephant in the room. She had always enjoyed going out for dinner with him or just having takeout at one of their places, although she would have never admitted it. Tonight, however, she didn't know what to talk about.

"So, Lizzy, what's on your mind?"

"Is this a therapy session?! I can have secrets for myself, Red. I don't have to tell you everything that's going on in my life."

"Why so grumpy today? Calm down, Lizzy. And by the way, my sources tell me you visited Glen."

"Your sources?! You still have people following me?"

"Keep your voice down."

"Why? We're at MY apartment."

"I just wanted to protect you and-"

"I don't need protection. I am a grown woman, I can take care of myself."

"Then tell me about that sister of yours."

She opened her mouth just to close it again after a few seconds, not being able to find the right words. How could she have been so stupid? Red had told her before that he had talked to Glen, obviously Glen had told him why she had visited him.

"Only when you tell me about my mother."

They stared at each other for a while.

"Deal." Red agreed.

Liz was well aware of the fact that he wouldn't tell her everything he knew, but it was a start.

"So…" she began. "A few months ago, I got a letter."

xxxxx

"… And then I decided to pay Glen a visit to find out more about Beth. Turns out that she was born in Russia, like me, and her real name is Mila, but I guess she doesn't know about this."

Suddenly Liz stopped, giving Red a look that was both happy and sad.

"What is it, sweetheart?"

"It's…well…kinda funny, isn't it? We both have a Russian name that starts with an M, we both don't know anything about our mother, who, by the way is the same, and we both don't know anything about our past. And…Red?"

"Yes, Lizzie?"

"There's something else I need to ask you. Did you know about Beth, I mean, Mila?"

When he didn't answer right away, she felt like she was about to have a heart attack.

"I did not. I swear to you, I had no idea. But the name thing with you two is in fact cute. Masha and Mila Rostova…I wonder why Katerina abandoned both her daughters. So, what are you planning to do? Adopt her?"

"Uuum, I actually thought about that. I always thought I was an only child, and suddenly, I'm a big sister! So…will you tell me about my mother now?"

Red sighed. He knew the day would come when he had to tell her the truth, he just didn't think it would be this soon. There was no way he could tell her everything today.

"I met Katerina two years before you were born. She was a KGB agent, and I worked for the US government. Our paths crossed on a…let's call it 'mission'."

"Let's call it 'mission'? What the hell happened, Red?"

"Now is not the time for this. Anyway, we met on a mission that didn't go so well and a lot of people died. Your mother and I became friends, although we weren't supposed to because we were in different agencies and she was a spy. And, to answer the question I see in your eyes: No, I never slept with her. That's all I am going to tell you today."

"You said you'd tell me more about her!"

"And I will. Just not right now."

xxxxx 4 weeks later:

Since Liz wasn't an agent anymore, she didn't have to come to the office every day. She had used this new freetime to actually visit Beth in the children's home, and had decided to adopt her. When she was married to Tom, she had wanted to adopt a baby, but after learning about Beth, she saw a new chance to have a family. She had always wanted a sister, and Red had taught her a thing or two about pulling strings to get what she wanted.

Beth was living with her now for two weeks, and it had been a hell of a chaos. Sure, Liz had enough room in her apartment, they were getting along greatly and she had found a nice school for Beth, who had already made friends with three other girls in her class, but for some reason, she hadn't told anyone about her new situation, not even Red. It was difficult to hide anything from him, and in fact, she suspected he already knew Beth was living with her. However, she came up with one explanation after another on why she wasn't free after 2 pm. Beth came home at this time every day, and Liz was doing her best to be a combination of a cool older sister and a mother to her. Sometimes, it was difficult, and sometimes Liz felt like right now, she was having the best time of her life.

The truth was, Beth was a troublemaker.

xxxxx

The next day Liz and Red met for dinner. They had a new case, so she had to think of a new reason why she couldn't leave the city.

"Lizzie. This is the fourth time you are telling me you can't join me on a case because you have something else to do. Don't you think it's time for you to tell me what's going on?"

"Don't pretend you don't already know that."

"You got me." He replied with his usual arrogant laugh she so liked but would never tell him. "Why didn't you tell me she's already living with you and you are having trouble doing this alone?"

"Trouble?! I don't have any trouble doing this alone. I can handle myself and I can handle being a single parent or single sister or single whatever."

"Elizabeth, people are looking at us. You will either keep your damn voice down or we're taking this conversation somewhere else." He said surprisingly calm, glaring at her with his most dangerous expression. She knew that look, and realized that her voice had gotten louder with every word.

"Fine. She wants to meet you anyway, and to be honest, I already thought about asking you for help." Liz admitted.

He smirked. "When can I meet her?"

"Depends on how quick we can wrap up the case."

"Then I guess I'll see you two in a few days."

xxxxx

Beth was nervous. She would finally meet her sister's friend Red whom she had heard of so much.

"Liiiiiz, when is he coming?"

"Patience sweety. It's almost seven, he'll be here anytime."

"Ohh, I can't wait! You told me so much about him! You two were like Bonnie and Clyde…I'm soooo excited!"

"I know, Beth. And remember: Don't let him tease you. He's an arrogant prick, but actually really nice if you get to know him."

Then finally, the bell rang.

 **xxxxx**

 **To be continued. Thanks for reading, please leave a review and tell me what you think!**


	3. Chapter 3

**I don't own the Blacklist and I don't make money with fanfiction.**

 **I have to admit that after everything that happened last season, I'm pretty disappointed and I'm not sure whether or not to watch the fourth season…The Blacklist used to be my favorite tv show, although season two wasn't as good as season one. I'll stick to reading and (occasionally) writing fanfiction, but I won't be as excited to watch new episodes as I used to be. And I sure as hell won't be watching that damn spinoff!**

 **What's your opinion?**

 **I know it's a short chapter, but I just don't have many ideas and not much time at the moment, sorry for the delay, here's chapter 3, please read and review.**

 **xxxxx**

Then finally, the bell rang. Beth opened the door, already excited to meet her sister's friend Red.

It was actually one of the nicest meetings Liz had had with Red. He was great with children. They cooked dinner together, which was a good opportunity for Liz to leave them alone in the kitchen while she laid the table. During dinner, Liz and Red obviously couldn't talk about work because they thought it might be disturbing for a nine year old to hear about psychopaths and serial killers. Instead, they talked about Beth's life in a new town and her new school. Red soon realized that Beth loved to live with Lizzie, who had told him that at first, Beth had of course been a little hesitant and often had nightmares from the children's home. Now, she was glad to live in a real home where she felt loved.

"So, Bethany-" Red began.

"Everyone calls me Beth, not Bethany!" she replied little too quickly.

Red glanced over to Liz. When they had first met, she had immediately told him how to call her, too _. "To you I'm Agent Keen"_ she had said back then.

"Fine, I'll call you Beth if you insist." He replied with a smile. "So how do you like it here?

The evening went by too quickly, and before Liz knew it, it was 10 pm, already past Beth's bedtime. Liz knew that persuading Beth to go to bed was always difficult. Tonight however, she was allowed to stay up late. An hour later, Red went home, not without helping with cleaning up the kitchen _. He's a true gentleman_ Liz thought.

xxxxx

Weeks later, it was already usual for Beth to have dinner with Red and her sister once or twice a week, depending on how much time they had because of their jobs. Beth knew that both of them worked for the FBI and that their job was dangerous. She didn't know about the serial killers, the psychopaths, the bomb threads, and that they put their lives on the line every day. At school, she told everyone her sister was catching bad guys.

Liz would never admit it, but she really appreciated Red's help with Beth. Due to the fact that they spent most of their freetime together, Liz had developed some unexpected feelings. She had always tried to keep their relationship professional, work related, but in the last few weeks there was something new between them.

xxxxx

Beth's teacher had called Liz in the evening. Again. The fourth time this month. She had "forgotten" her math homework, had argued with her least favorite teacher and had picked a fight with another girl in the school yard.

Liz had talked to Beth about everything, asked her why she was behaving like this at school. She would have understood it if Beth was a teenager, but she was only 9 years old, so she found it a little weird, but not alarming. She had done everything what she thought a good mother would do to keep her kid out of trouble. Until now, neither she nor Beth had told Red about these incidents, but now Liz felt he should be the one to talk to Beth now.

The task force and Red had finished their latest case on a Thursday night, at 3 am. It wasn't really the time to think about Beth's behavior at school, since everyone still was a bit shaken up from the case, but Liz knew Red had noticed that something was bothering her for a couple of weeks.

"Lizzie, what are you thinking about? Is it Beth?"

"Why the hell do you always seem to know what I'm thinking about?"

"Oh, Lizzie…and here I thought you knew you were an open book to me."

Liz sighed. There was no point in hiding anything from Red, he knew everything about everything anyway.

"Fine, uuum, well, you know I'm just her sister, not her mom, and I tried a lot to make her tell me what's going on with her right now, but she just won't tell me. I'm guessing she has trouble at school. Her teacher has called me four times this month, and next week I have an appointment with him…I don't know what to tell him because I have no idea what's really bothering her. I mean…she's just nine years old and already has problems at school? There has to be something wrong, damn it!"

"Calm down, I'll talk to her tomorrow-"

"What could she possibly tell _you_ what she cannot tell _me_?!"

"I don't know yet. Just let me talk to her, Elizabeth."

xxxxx

The following Monday Liz came home early. She had spent the weekend camping in the woods with Beth, which had been fun for both of them.

While they were fishing, Liz had decided to tell Beth everything she knew about their mother, because she didn't want to keep any secrets from her. It had been a mistake from Red not to tell her everything he knew, so she thought it was best to tell Beth the whole story before she found out herself. In Liz' opinion, Beth wasn't too young to know the truth, she was very mature for her age.

In return, Beth had told her a little about what was going on, but Liz was sure she had left something out. Apparently there was a group of girls from her class being mean to her, and one of the girls, Ashley, was her math teacher's favorite student. Beth hated math, she just was terrible at it. She always said the teacher, Mr. Benett, was an asshole who was bad at his job and was too stupid to explain math to her so that she could understand it. Liz knew that Beth swore too much, and that language was one of the reasons Liz had to see her teacher. She thought it was her fault, since she herself used a lot of swearwords, so she tried to not talk like this when Beth was around.

Apart from that, Beth was very good at school, especially at languages. Her English teacher told Liz that Beth was already reading on the fourth-grade-level, although she was in the third grade, and that her homework and exams were always flawless.

So that day when she came home, she saw Red and Beth sitting at the kitchen table. He was helping her with her homework, something that Liz would never had imagined with Red. She just stood in the corner of the living room, watching them from the distance. Of course Red had let himself in by picking the lock somehow, he didn't have a key to her apartment. Beth didn't question why he was there before she came home from school, she just assumed he did have a key.

"Dividing is hard, Ray!"

"No, it is not." He mumbled to himself, then smiled at her and told her to try again.

Liz liked the fact that Beth called him Ray.

Can't I do the other homework first? I don't wanna do these stupid math exercises!"

"You can do the other homework later, now focus, Bethany."

"No! Why do I need math, anyway? I wanna be a writer someday, and for writing novels I don't need dividing or multiplying, damn it!"

"Language, Bethany."

"Liz says it all the time."

"Liz is a grown-up."

Beth looked at him like a grumpy four-year-old, but then continued with her math homework without arguing anymore.

xxxxx

"Listen, Red…I really appreciate that you're helping Beth with her homework and everything, but you don't have to come over five times a week." Liz said while drinking coffee in the surveillance van outside the possible bombers house of their newest case. "You know…you're not her father."

"I know that, Lizzie. You can take care of yourself and your sister. You're a strong, independent woman, but…to be honest, I want to be a part of this."

For a brief moment, she was speechless, she had not expected that much honesty from him. The real reason she didn't want him to be at her home too often was that she thought she couldn't hide her feelings for him. She wasn't really sure about these feelings, but she knew she needed time to figure out what exactly she wanted.

"Fine, visit us as often as you want…we practically live together anyway."

 _Oh my God, that was a weird thing to say…so wrong on so many levels…_ she immediately thought. _I'll be sitting in this car the whole night and I can't escape!_

Red, as always, seemed to know when to change the topic. He could have intentionally made her uncomfortable, like he had done in the past, but not today.

xxxxx

One day in April, Liz had taken a box of case files home to gain insight into a cold case from 20 years ago. The more she read, the more she got the feeling it was about her mother. There was a name on the file, but it wasn't Katerina Rostova, it was Victoria Mason, which obviously was a fake name. She decided she wouldn't tell anyone before she had gotten through all the files, not even Red. There was time enough to tell him later. She put the box and her notes in the safe, then forced her mind to sleep, she had read the whole time after Beth had gone to bed, which had been 5 hours ago.

 **xxxxx**

 **Thanks for reading, please leave a review and tell me what you think.**


	4. Chapter 4

**I don't own The Blacklist and I don't make money with fanfiction.**

 **Sorry for the delay, I'm just very busy at the moment because of exams…**

 **Chapter 4, please read and review!**

 **xxxxx**

Previously: One day in April, Liz had taken a box of case files home to gain insight into a cold case from 20 years ago. The more she read, the more she got the feeling it was about her mother. […] She decided she wouldn't tell anyone before she hadn't gotten through all the files, not even Red […].

xxxxx

"So, Beth, anything else I need to know before I go see your teacher?" Liz asked Beth while she was searching for her keys in the overpriced handbag Red gave her for Christmas.

"No, not really. I guess that bastard is just gonna tell you that I forgot to do homework a couple of times. Who needs math anyway?"

"Damn it, Beth! What does Red always tell you about not using this kind of language? And we already had that discussion about you doing your homework and paying attention in class because you _do_ need math."

"Ok, fine! I'll try not to use that language anymore…"

"You better keep your promise, or else you will have a discussion with Red."

Beth mumbled an answer, then went to her room. She knew Liz wouldn't be mad at her for long, but 'uncle' Ray, how she called him in her mind, she wasn't so sure about. She had heard him and Liz argue one night about the way Liz dealt with her behavior. She also knew that after what was going to come out at the parent-teacher-conference tonight there would be a discussion.

Right now, however, Beth used Liz's absence to sneak through the files she had left next to the bed last night. Beth knew about the safe where Liz put everything important, but Liz didn't always use the safe because she trusted Beth not to go through her room. That was what Beth was feeling so bad about. She betrayed her big sisters trust who had gotten her out of that awful children's home, and who had given her this great new life. There was actually no excuse for betraying that trust, but she did it anyway.

 _No one will ever know about it, so it isn't that bad, right?_ she thought, already having a bad conscience. She knew she was a making a mistake, but she just couldn't help it.

xxxxx

Meanwhile, Liz was seriously considering grounding Beth for the rest of her life.

Her math teacher had just told her that she in fact always did her homework and that it had improved, but that she also disrespected him and some other teachers, she had a very quick temper and that she sometimes insulted other students.

Liz guessed he was talking about his few favorite students, but there was no excuse for disrespecting teachers, no matter how much you hate them. Yes, Beth was acting way too grown up for an eight year old, and sometimes she behaved like a rebellious teenager. Liz knew this was because of how the kids had been treated in the children's home. They had to prove themselves in order to not be bullied by the stronger and older kids, so Beth had developed a strong will and an emotional coldness that was unusual for a child.

Liz did everything to defend Beth to Mr. Bennett, who was in fact the typical math teacher: scary, strict and without the slightest sense of humor. On the other hand, he was absolutely right about Beth's lack of respect. At home and with her friends, Beth was the best kid anyone could think of, but sometimes, Red had to set her straight, which almost always ended in an argument. Liz couldn't bring herself to be mad at her or raise her voice at her, but this time, Beth would face consequences for what Mr. Bennett had told Liz.

She had talked to some other teachers who had all told her the same, so before she drove home, she called Red from her cell phone while she was already in the car.

"Hey, Red. Listen, I have to talk to you about Beth."

"What did she do now? You two seem to be more alike than I thought."

"What are you saying?"

"Think about it, you'll figure it out." Red replied in that teasing voice that was always making Liz furious.

She sighed, he was driving her mad. "Can you come over please?"

"Sure, Lizzie. I'll be there in fifteen minutes."

"Me too, I'm still in the car."

xxxxx

Beth was laying on her bed, completely engrossed in thought about what she had just read. She had lost all sense of time, when she heard the door open. She quickly ran into Liz's room and put the files back where she had found them, ran back into her room, trying to be as quiet as she could. She then turned the lights out and pretended to sleep, while actually being wide awake. After reading the first file, she had finally found out about who she believed was her real father. Liz had put a few notes into the files, so Beth assumed it was about their mother.

Downstairs, she heard how Liz opened the door and threw her keys onto the table. This time a little louder than intended.

 _Damn it, she's angry. Tomorrow morning's breakfast is gonna be uncomfortable. I wonder what that bastard Mr. Bennett told her. Hopefully she hasn't told Ray yet._

That hope was destroyed when there was a knock on the door. She heard him greeting Liz, and then there was a short time in which she believed he hugged her _. "I thought he has a key, why the hell is he knocking?!"_ While holding her favorite stuffed animal, Beth fell asleep.

xxxxx

"Good evening Lizzie. So, tell me about our little troublemaker."

"Our? She's not yours." After a moment of silence and a raised eyebrow, Liz realized that what she had just said sounded kind of weird in this context. "Um, well. What I meant was-"

I know what you meant." Red interrupted her.

They sat down on the couch in the living room, and without thinking, Liz put her legs over Red's legs, which didn't seem to bother him at all. Their relationship was changing without them noticing it. She started telling him everything she had learned tonight. Everytime he started to get angry, she somehow managed to calm him down a little, but after she had told him everything, he was furious.

"Red, just calm down, we'll talk to her tomorrow after school. I don't want her day to start with a lecture at breakfast. I understand how angry you are, but please don't scold her while she's having her orange juice. I think after you lost your daughter, you forgot how to be a dad and-" _What the hell am I talking about? Did I just say he is like a dad to Beth? That would make him my…oh my God, don't even think about it!"_ Liz thought, closing her eyes.

"What did you just say to me?" he replied with a hint of anger in his voice. It was clear to both of them that she had just accused him of being a bad father. He knew she already regretted it, and the tone of his voice brought her back to reality.

"I'm just saying that you're too strict with her."

"You're not strict enough, Lizzie! She has to learn that there are consequences."

"I agree with you, but she's only eight, and I'm not her mother, I'm her sister. I considered grounding her and having a little talk, but that's it."

"Fine. You talk to her. If that doesn't work, I will, are we clear?"

"'Are we clear'?! She is the one to be scolded, not me. You know that, right?" Liz replied with a grin on her face. She wanted to put her feet on the ground to get some water, but he held her ankles, and when she struggled against it, he tightened his grip a little. It felt good. He had held them the whole time without noticing, and then finally, he let go of them. There was a weird silence before Liz actually went to the kitchen and got two glasses of water.

When she came back to the couch, he sat there with his usual confidence and his lack of being embarrassed by anything. They talked for another few hours, time flying by too quickly, and suddenly it was midnight.

"I guess we should go to bed…well, not together, obviously, but there's breakfast at 7:30 and then we have to be at work at 8:30 , so…" Liz said.

"I'll take the couch, Lizzy. Good night."

"Good night, Red"

xxxxx

The next morning, Beth didn't want to get up. There would be a huge discussion about what her teachers had told Liz, and Ray wouldn't be amused, either. She really liked him, but she didn't want him to lecture her at 7:30 in the morning.

She went downstairs to find him and Liz preparing breakfast. She always admired them for having this cool FBI job, Ray being an actual criminal, Liz being a total badass agent and still, they managed to give her kind of a normal family life. Ray sometimes was travelling, and often, Liz accompanied him. Then, their friend and colleague Aram was watching after her. He was really cool, she had learned all kinds of computer stuff from him and he had told her funny stories from work that neither Ray nor Liz would ever talk about.

This morning however, the atmosphere was tense. She sat down to eat a bowl of cereal and drink orange juice while waiting for the lecture that was about to come. To her surprise, even a minute before she left for school nothing had happened. She looked at Liz with a big question in her eyes.

"We're gonna talk about it this afternoon, ok?"

"K." Beth answered, then went to school, mentally preparing for 'the talk'.

xxxxx

When Beth turned the key to open the door, she had good news and bad news. The good news were that she had gotten a C+ in the math test, which was really good for her compared to her previous grades in math. The bad news were that Beth had to sign for the test, which also meant that she would see the note Mr. Bennett had left under his signature.

Liz and Ray were cooking dinner while talking about their latest case. They had been working together for so long that they could talk about the most disgusting criminals while doing every-day-things like cooking, going to the supermarket or having a walk in the park.

"Lizzie, this blacklister is one of the worst we have ever had. Next time when we're close to catching him, be more careful. I sincerely hope you know what you're dealing with. He cuts his victims open and rips their faces off without sedating them. Then he makes masks from their faces and sells them as Halloween masks." He told her while he was cutting vegetables.

"Cool!" came Beth's voice from the kitchen door.

Both Liz and Red turned around, they hadn't heard her coming in. Usually, they avoided talking about work in front of her in order to shield her from the bad world out there. She was too young to know about the sick people they were dealing with at work. Red put the vegetables into the frying pan much calmer than Liz had expected.

"Bethany. First of all, this isn't even slightly 'cool' and secondly, Liz has to talk to you about something, sit down."

Beth watched Liz sitting down on the opposite chair while Red continued cooking. It was obvious they had started cooking later this time so there was time to discuss.

"Listen, Beth. Disrespecting your teachers isn't ok. You can also not insult teachers or your classmates if there isn't a good reason for it."

Red coughed loudly.

"What I'm saying is that you cannot insult anyone under no circumstances." Liz finished with a small smile on her face. She had heard many times how Red insulted people, and that was not for children's ears. "Why are you behaving like that at school, anyway?"

"Ashley that stupid- um, Ashley is every teacher's favorite, she acts like that perfect kid who's always nice, but behind the teacher's backs and during the break, she's being mean to me and my friends."

"What does she do?"

"I don't really wanna talk about it…"

Liz sighed, she wouldn't force Beth to tell her everything, and then she remembered the math test Beth had talked about last week.

"Fine, you don't have to say it if you don't want to. But…what about that math test? Did you already get the result?"

Beth was silent for a moment, then she rummaged around in her bag and handed her two pieces of paper.

"A C+ ? Well done, Beth. Much better than the previous ones!"

"Ashley gets an A in every test although she's just as good as me! That's so unfair!"

"You have A's in every other subject, you're only in grade 3, so a C+ in just one subject is good. Don't be upset because of some girl you don't like."

xxxxx

After Liz had cheered Beth up and dinner went really well, Beth had gained the courage to tell Liz about the note that was sticking on the second page with a post-it.

"Um… take a look at the second page."

Liz did, and after a few seconds of reading the note she handed it to Red. She could see his endless patience with Beth leave his face, but when he spoke, his voice was surprisingly calm.

"'Dear Ms. Keen,

I have to inform you that Bethany will be suspended from class for physically attacking a fellow student after an argument about grades in the test. Furthermore, she will have to do some extra exercises in the math book from page 40 to 43.

Regards, Thomas Bennett.' "

Beth shifted in her chair, trying to stay calm. Like always, she was hiding her embarrassment behind anger. "So what?! She deserved it!"

"What did you do?"

No answer.

"What did you do, Bethany?" he asked again.

 _Oh, no. That's his 'Elizabeth' voice…_ Liz thought.

"I…um, I kinda slapped Ashley across the face when she told everyone she had an 'A' and then called me stupid when she found out I had only a C+. She started crying and I slapped her again when she pushed me against the wall…I called her a…a bitch and pulled at her hair…and then Mr. Bennett separated us…" she finished.

"You did what?!" Liz and Red asked at the same time. "After I left the parent-teacher-conference last night, I thought about grounding you. Before dinner, I guessed it wasn't necessary anymore, but now…"

"You can't do that!" Beth immediately complained.

"Oh yes, she can. You have no say in this." Red said sternly, his eyes on Beth, staring her down.

"But..."

"No but. You are grounded for a week, and there will be no debate about this."

"But Ray!"

"I said no debate."

"You're so unfair!" Beth yelled and ran upstairs to her room.

Red turned to Liz, looking her straight in the eyes.

"She has your temper."

 **xxxxx**

 **TBC**

 **Thanks for reading, please leave a review and tell me what you think**


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